Russia and Ukraine to sign grain export deal, says Turkey

Ukraine and Russia are expected to sign an agreement on Friday to resume Ukraine’s Black Sea grain exports, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan’s office announced on Thursday. Turkey and United Nation’s Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will also sign the deal.

“The grain export agreement, critically important for global food security, will be signed in Istanbul tomorrow under the auspices of President Erdoğan and UN Secretary-General Mr. Guterres together with Ukrainian and Russian delegations,” Erdogan spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said in a tweet.

Before the war broke out between Russia and Ukraine on February 24, Ukraine supplied 11% of the world’s grains—worth about $18.5 billion in 2018, according to World Bank data.

The Russian blockade around Ukraine’s Black Sea ports has sent food prices soaring due to the lack of available supply, creating an international food crisis.

Ukraine’s grain supplies were one of the main food sources for the Middle East and Africa, regions that are now undergoing a famine because their access to grains has been cut off. Ukraine was also a major supplier of the United Nation’s World Food Program, which helps give food to countries in need.

Authorities claim there are dozens of ships stranded and about 20 million tons of grain are stuck in silos at Ukrainian ports.

Turkey said the agreement between the two countries was reached during talks in Istanbul last week. While the details of the agreement have not yet been disclosed, the four parties are due to sign it on Friday at the Dolmabahce Palace offices at 13:30 GMT.

The U.N. and Turkey had been working for months on a “package deal” that would bring Russia and Ukraine to sign the agreement.

Last week, after both sides met in Istanbul, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that the deal to be signed includes joint controls for checking shipments in harbors.

Russia and Ukraine have not yet confirmed the deal. However, Ukraine’s foreign ministry said that the U.N. would lead another round of talks in Turkey on Friday.

The United States welcomed the deal, as many western leaders had been trying to restore the grain networks for months.

"We should never have been in this position in the first place," U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said. "This was a deliberate decision on the part of the Russian Federation to weaponize food."